Jeremy Bentham: Prophet of secularism

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Professor Philip Schofield, UCL Bentham Project

Bentham begins An Introduction to the Principals of Morals and Legislation (1780) by stating “Nature has placed mankind under the governance of two sovereign masters, pain and pleasure.” For the religiously inclined, “Nature” referred to human psychology, based in turn on human physiology.
Bentham’s revolt against religion was evident when, at the age of 16, he resented being forced to subrscibe to the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England in order to take his degree. Thenceforward he advocated religious freedom, and the abolition of all formal connection between church and state.